


The Things We Do For Kama

by RandomFandomTraveller



Category: Mahabharata - Vyasa
Genre: F/F, M/M, pure fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-25
Updated: 2020-04-25
Packaged: 2021-03-02 03:08:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,107
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23838103
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RandomFandomTraveller/pseuds/RandomFandomTraveller
Summary: Inspired by toujours_nigel 's work 'Kama', this piece is simply an expansion on the wonderfully written dialogue. Basically, Arjun's emotionally repressed and Krishna is having none of it. Subhadra harbors feelings of her own and Balarama? He just wants a vacation from dealing with the fact that both his siblings are chaotic messes.Somewhat crack, don't mind the OOC nature of everyone involved.
Relationships: Arjuna (Mahabharata)/Krishna (Hindu Religions & Lore), Draupadi/Subhadra(Mahabharata)
Comments: 6
Kudos: 37





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:** **Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arjuna has something to tell Krishna. Krishna already knows, as usual.

Krishna is staring at him, his dark eyes lit up in amusement. Arjuna can’t help but tremble a little with the request he had for him.

“Subhadra. You want to marry Subhadra?”

Arjuna nodded, his expression steeled.

“Yes”

“My little sister?”

“Yes”

“You know that Balarama will slaughter me if I consent to this, right?” Krishna lifts a perfectly shaped eyebrow, incredulously.

“I understand.” Arjuna clenches his fist, thinking that Krishna would not relent. He stares into Krishna’s deep brown eyes, trying to gauge what went through the man’s mind.

“Do you truly love her so?” Krishna’s voice was soft, his even tone having an underlying amusement, as though he could read something from Arjuna that the man himself had not known. 

“Yes, Keshav, a thousand times over. Give me a million feats in order to wed her, perhaps even something as difficult as going to Yamaloka and back-“

“I wouldn’t put you through that, dear….. _friend”_

Arjuna realised with mild surprise that Krishna had stroked his cheek. Hidden emotions, which had not seen the light of day, stirred within. Arjuna opened his mouth to say something but words couldn’t come out.

“I-I…..I love her. Completely.” He stammered.

“My duty as an older brother demands me to say no to your request. Besides, Panchaali will be right next to my brother in murdering me. Have some consideration for your friend, will you?” Krishna laughed, the sound reminding Arjuna of the peal of temple bells on a festival day.

“But Krishna-“

“Partha.” Krishna was gentle. He patted Arjuna’s broad shoulder and turned to stand by the window. Krishna’s chambers overlooked the ocean and had a perpetual scent of sea salt. The afternoon breeze combed through the man’s jet-black curls. A knowing smile played on his lips, something which unnerved Arjuna at this particular moment.

Arjuna realised that he had failed in convincing Krishna with his proposal. He bowed in acknowledgement of Krishna’s decision.

“I shall leave then. Perhaps I will start for Indraprastha on the morrow.”

As he turned to leave, Krishna stopped him. Arjuna almost gasped at Krishna’s firm grip on his wrist.

“Convince me, Partha. Convince me of your desire for her.” Krishna’s voice was gentle.

Arjuna turned to see that Krishna’s playful expression had changed to one of….was that desperation?

At that very instant, Arjuna’s mind raced with a multitude of thoughts. He always liked Krishna, as a friend, as a guide, as a-

Arjuna felt embarrassment as he buried his face into Krishna’s shoulder, their hands still in each other’s. Krishna embraced him, and Arjuna could catch the scent of the sea and parijata flowers lingering on Krishna’s beautiful dark skin.

Arjuna savoured the moment more than he thought he would. He finally let himself have the freedom to say Krishna’s name as a lover would.

“Krishna.” He whispered.

“See her in me, Partha. I hope that isn’t too arduous-“

Arjuna kissed Krishna’s neck, shaking his head. “Krishna.” He repeated.

“Subhadra, remember?” Krishna’s voice was tinged with amusement.

Arjuna stared into Krishna’s dark brown eyes, filled with a gentleness which Arjuna _knew_ was reserved for those he truly loved. Arjuna placed his hand on Krishna’s cheek, his heart beating faster. Krishna leaned into the touch, granting him his unspoken request.

Arjuna chuckled slightly, feeling his shame for such an association vanish.

“No. Krishna.” He whispered, as he gently placed a kiss on Krishna’s perfect lips. To his surprise, Krishna took control, deepening their kiss and running his hands through Arjuna’s well kept hair.

“Took you long enough.” chuckled Krishna as they broke apart. “Even Bhadra knows you’ve been mooning after me. It was only a matter of time.”

Arjuna blushed, burying his face against Krishna’s shoulder once again. “How obvious was it?”  
“Very.”

Arjuna chuckled sardonically. “I’m not great at holding back my feelings, aren’t I?”

“No, but you’re terrible at expressing them too.” Krishna pulled back, his arms on Arjuna’s shoulders. “Arjuna, I only ask one thing of you.” Krishna sounded serious.

“Anything, Keshav.”

“Let yourself go around me. Be who you want to be, and I will accept you as you are. To the world, you are a dhanurdhari, a warrior and a red blooded kshatriya. But to me…” Krishna tenderly touched Arjuna’s cheek. Arjuna was moved. His eyes stung with tears and he felt his heart swell with emotion.

“Be yourself. As a lover would. Be the tender man only few have seen.” Krishna’s voice was soft as he traced Arjuna’s cheek. Arjuna grasped Krishna’s hand and kissed it, a tears unwittingly slipping out of his eyes as he closed them to relish the waves of emotion that washed over him.

Contentment. This was true contentment. Arjuna knew of love, but without contentment. The contentment of being in the company of a person who just _knew_. Never in his life had Arjuna savoured moments the way he savoured his time with Krishna, despite having met him only at Draupadi’s swayamvar at Panchal. Something about the way the man carried himself drew Arjuna to him. Krishna charmed all those around him, and Arjuna realised that he had been unwittingly charmed the most. But most importantly, Arjuna finally felt the need to escape from the view society had of him. He finally could let the mask of being ‘ideal’ fall. Arjuna briefly wondered if it was Krishna’s very presence that made him feel so, or if everyone else felt it too.

“I can only try.” Arjuna promised, choking out a sob.

Krishna patted his cheek one more time, his eyes full of compassion. “Good man.” He chuckled.

Arjuna leaned into Krishna’s shoulder once again, the gesture calming his anxious thoughts. Krishna continued to stroke his hair, whispering soft reassurances. Arjuna wanted to remain in Krishna’s embrace forever, never to face the cruel world and its judgement.

“Lady Subhadra is at the entrance, my Lord.” Came the voice of a guard, who luckily didn’t chance upon the incredibly intimate moment his master and his “friend’ were having.

Arjuna was startled. He leapt away from Krishna, thinking that they would be seen. Krishna’s grip on his forearm was strong, however, keeping him rooted in place.

“Inform her to wait a while.” Krishna said. “Her brother is an incredibly messy man, and he does not intend she see his messes.” He added, chuckling a little.

“But you shouldn’t-“ Arjuna insisted, but was cut off by Krishna’s long finger on his lips.

“Oh, she’ll wait. Meanhwhile…” Krishna leaned in for a quick, passionate kiss. This time, Arjuna was less hesitant to give it back to Krishna. Krishna’s eyes widened in surprise, as he gave an audible moan of pleasure. The two broke apart as quickly as they started, with Krishna chuckling.

“So, the ladies _do_ give you the credit you deserve. My, am I lucky to be one to experience it.” Krishna said, a hint of flirtation in his voice.

Arjuna smiled. “Well, all you needed to do is ask.”

“With your level of emotional repression, I would have needed to be Mohini herself to get that.” scoffed Krishna.

Arjuna shook his head, chuckling to himself. He turned to leave Krishna’s chambers, not wanting to disturb the siblings.

As he exited to the halls of the palace, he passed a surprised looking Subhadra. He briefly bowed to her in acknowledgement and quickly paced the halls to his own chambers.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Subhadra has a confession of her own.

“I came here to call you for the afternoon meal, but I clearly see you had something sweet before having even a single morsel.” Said Subhadra, her hands on her hips.

“You KNEW he’d be here, Bhadra.”

“Course I did. I knew what he wanted and clearly he got it.” She chuckled. “So? How was it?”

“Not telling.” Krishna stretched out onto his diwan lazily, a smirk on his face.

“Suit yourself. Dau bhaiyya owes me a bag of gold, either way.” She sat down at his feet and pushed them off. Krishna sat up straight, a scowl on his features at being disturbed from his lazing.

“You two have been capitalising on my love life for AGES. Isn’t it time to stop?” he mockingly whined, a ghost of a smirk on his face.

“No. Not until I empty Dau Bhaiyya’s coffers.”

“I’m pretty sure that’s sure to happen with your dowry- OW OW OW OW….Gods, Subhadra!” Krishna laughed and cried out in pain as Subhadra pinched his forearm. HARD.

“That reminds me, Dau wants to give me to Duryodhan.” Subhadra gritted her teeth.

“He isn’t a bad man as they all make him out to be, you know-“

“It’s not that.” Subhadra cut him off, twisting her hands a little nervously. She looked at her brother, her eyes full of the same guilt he saw in Arjuna’s eyes before his admission of love.

Krishna blinked. “Wait……who is it?” he asked, his voice full of understanding. He sidled up to his sister and wrapped an arm around her shoulder.

Subhadra looked down at her hands. “P-Paanchali.” She stuttered a little.

Krishna hummed thoughtfully. “I understand, she is a beautiful one-“ Subhadra ribbed him in response “Oi, I was supporting you!” he protested, chuckling as he did so.

“I was hoping…..maybe I’d be closer to her if I…” Subhadra looked uncomfortable once again. She took a deep breath.

“I was hoping that I marry Arjuna so that….so that I could be closer to _her._ If-“ she paused, looking at Krishna’s bewildered face. “If you have no problem with that…”

Krishna stood up and paced the lavish carpet, his expression thoughtful. “It’s not like _I_ could marry him, anyway. Hastinapura would forever see me as a blemish, and I wouldn’t be able to get anything done politically.” Krishna’s even tone had an underlying anger to it, even as he let out a sardonic chuckle.

“In addition, it would tarnish the perfect image he has for himself.” Krishna added softly. He sat back down next to Subhadra, his melancholy a fleeting cloud. He smiled.  
  
“When do you say you want this to happen?” Krishna rubbed his palms together with glee, his eyes glinting once again.  
  



	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Balarama is a Tired man.

“ _Why_ did this travesty happen?” wailed a Council Member “This is an outrage to The Yadavas!”

Kritvarman scoffed “ It _is_ Krishna’s sister after all. It was definitely planned and orchestrated by-“  
  
“Kritvarman, one more _fucking_ insinuation out of your whore mouth and I swear to the gods that I will throw you into the deepest part of the sea.” seethed Satyaki.

Balarama sat adjacent to him, thankful that Satyaki had somewhat become his anger translator. He sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose before he quelled the cacophony with a loud slam onto the Council table. His hand smarted from the impact, but it was a welcome distraction to the annoying self-satisfied expression on Krishna’s face amidst the chaos. His brother was incorrigible.  
  


“ I was planning on getting Subhadra married to Prince Duryodhan of the Kauravas-“ Balarama wanted to beat up that _asshole_ Kritvarman for nodding approvingly, considering that the man bad mouthed _both_ his siblings in one sentence.  
“But it appears that we still have a Hastinapur alliance. Furthermore my _sister-“_ he said, side eyeing Kritvarman. “expressed her interest in Arjuna while we were considering the alliance just barely after we started to reach out to Hastinapur. The obvious conclusion is that she had orchestrated this with Arjuna’s help _herself_ to avoid any potential furthering of hers and Duryodhan’s marriage.”  
  
Balarama looked around the table warily, and continued. “This is still a victory for the Yadavas. Our Emergency Council is dismissed for today.”

Krishna sidled up to him and fell into pace as the two walked away from the Council chambers.  
“I owe you one.”  
“You owe me your _life,_ dumbass _._ I swear if you make me deal with Kritvarman’s smarmy face again over such matters, I will personally resign the Council and make you deal with him yourself. Which reminds me…..this is the fourth time this month I’ve had to cover for you. I swear if you ask-“  
Krishna raised his palms in surrender. “Fine, Fine, I’ll handle the Council meetings for a while after this.”  
  
“One month, Krishna. No bargains, no excuses.”  
  
Krishna pouted. “What if I have something planned with my lover-“  
  
“I don’t care. He’ll come on his own anyway. That dumbass needs to return your horse and chariot to you.”  
  
Krishna laughed and slapped Balarama's back, eliciting a reluctant smile from the older man. "You're truly the best, Dau!" he said, his eyes twinkling just as they used to when they were children.   
  
Balarama sighed. Anything was worth keeping his siblings happy. _Anything._


End file.
